A new study suggests that eating one avocado a day can significantly improve your diet. But it’s not just the nutritional value of the avocado that makes the difference. They say that adding the fruit can change your outlook on other foods…
Guacamole: Just one way to incorporate an avocado a day into your diet…
What they did
Researchers at Penn State University (PSU) wanted to determine what, if any benefits eating more avocados would have on the average American’s diet. They notes that only 2 percent of Americans eat significant amounts of the nutritionally rich fruit on a regular basis. Would eating more make a worthwhile difference for us all?
Previous studies showed that adding avocados to the average diet can help reduce risk of cardiovascular disease, obesity, type 2 diabetes, kidney disease and many other preventable diseases. But its nutrient-dense nature bodes well for your whole system. Researchers say it can help fill in nutritional ‘holes’ left by consumption of processed – and junk foods and under-consumption of healthy foods.
The team chose 1,008 participants who were split into two groups. One continued their usual diet and limited their avocado intake during the 26-week study. The other incorporated one avocado per day into their diet.
Subjects were contacted at intervals throughout the study period asking them about what they were eating. The information gathered was then used to evaluate their diets using the Healthy Eating Index to determine how well they adhered to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Adherence to the Guidelines was used as a measure of overall diet quality.
What they found
As expected, the researchers found that the subjects who ate an avocado a day came out healthier than their counterparts. But there was more to it than simply the effects of the added nutrients.
“We found that the participants who had an avocado per day significantly increased their adherence to dietary guidelines,” team leader Dr. Kristina Petersen said. “This suggests that strategies, like eating one avocado per day, can help people follow dietary guidelines and improve the quality of their diets.”
The takeaway
“By improving people’s adherence to dietary guidelines, we can help to reduce their risk of developing these chronic conditions and prolong healthy life expectancy,” Petersen concluded.
My take
This discovery could be even more important than it appears on its surface. Can other nutrition-rich foods achieve the same ‘behavioural’ effects as avocados? How much of an improvement does eating avocados on a regular basis actually make?
The Penn State study opens a door to a whole new world of potential for dietary research. One that could help save health care systems around the world hundreds of billions of dollars a year in treatment costs. Not to mention reducing the current crushing demand for health care services.
Further research is definitely indicated!
~ Maggie J.